Kent Plantation House unveils new memorial, art exhibit for Black History Month

ALEXANDRIA, La. (KALB) - The historic Kent Plantation House unveiled a new memorial on Saturday, Feb. 4, honoring enslaved people who were once held there.

A stone and plaque were placed outside of the slave quarters on the plantation property. The engraving tells a short history of the plantation and includes some of the names of the enslaved people who were kept there. Kent Plantation House officials said the stone makes sure the whole history of the once-working plantation is told, and that the story includes slavery and what enslaved people endured during that time.

40 to 46 slaves worked the plantation, yet only nine names of those slaves could be found through baptism records from the catholic church in Mansura.

“We took those names, few as they are, we wish there were more, but we took what we had from the sacramental records and created this memorial using those names to stand as representatives for all of those whose names are known now only to God,” said Father Chad Partain, Chancellor of the Diocese of Alexandria and researcher for the memorial. “So, we wanted to create this monument in stone and bronze, it’s a simple stone but a memorial stone, a touchstone, for those souls who sadly went through that awful tragic period in American history.”

The Kent House Plantation also features a Black History Month art exhibit titled Faces of Freedom by local artist Ransom Rambo. The exhibition features a variety of portraits of prolific Black figures including Rosa Parks, Harriet Tubman, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Faces of Freedom will be on display at the Kent House Plantation until the end of February.

For more information on the Kent Plantation House, CLICK HERE.

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